My car (1995 Audi A6 quattro) has 167K miles. I recently had an accident which appeared to only affect the body - a truck bed liner dented the front of the hood and bumper, and destroyed the windshield. A month later, the car has a blown fuse; I'm not sure what caused it, because it worked fine and then a few days later that's how it started up.

I've taken it to a mechanic who says the codes indicate a multifunction switch attached to the transmission, and apparently this part is not available to order. He called a dealer who said "You might have to buy a new transmission to get that part." He called someone else (another indep. mechanic) who has another '95 A6 quattro, who said that they had a problem where there was burnt debris in the pan when they pulled it out. They solved it by sending the transmission to San Francisco to get it fixed. My mechanic estimates in the range of $1800, and of course we don't know if that will definitely fix it (he hasn't pulled the pan yet on my car).

Any thoughts, suggestions? The blue book value seems to be around $5k if it's in good condition, which it's not in its current state. Does anyone think the accident could have caused it and I should call my insurance co. to see if they'll pay?

 

Is the transmission in the car the original with 167k on it? My uneducated guess would be that it would not be related but just dumb luck. With 167k and 12 years of faithful service on any transmission switches die. Call junk yards if it is an externally mounted switch.

Best of Luck,
Jeff